Huvilat – Pongwe

"TOA Hotel & Spa Zanzibar is a fairly new, very clean and cozy resort. The beach isn’t great for swimming, but we knew this at the time of the booking. The pool area is nice, but the water is a bit cold. We booked a room with a jacuzzi, but unfortunately there were quite a few problems with the jacuzzi. They tried to clean and fix the jacuzzi a few times, but the water temperature would not hold comfortable (either too hot or cold) and the jacuzzi kept getting debris from the hosing. The room cleaning took ages and wasn’t completed at one time. Housekeeping came there many times a day and didn’t really respect our privacy. The room was always very clean though. The food was good and nice variability through our stay. The only exception were the dessert cakes, which didn’t have any taste (seems to be the case everywhere in Tanzania). The beach dinner was particularly nice! Special thanks go to waitress Saida and pasta chef Abdillah. They were always very friendly to all guests and took pride in their work. The snorkeling tour booked through Funzibar, that works in TOA, was great. However, beware of booking transportation through them or at least make sure you have extra time for the travel. Both times we did that, the driver wasn’t there at the time of departure. No one was expecting us at the airport when we arrived, and the driver wasn’t there either when we were leaving. Overall, we had a really pleasant stay in TOA. Thank you!"